There's a chance the Green Bay Packers enter week 18 in a win-and-in situation. There's also a scenario where they are mathematically eliminated from contention. This is how relevant the Sunday Night Football game against the Minnesota Vikings is — it defines if the Packers will fight for the playoffs or start their offseason plan.

For the Packers to depend only on themselves in week 18, they need to beat the Vikings and have two other results going their way on Sunday — first, the Chicago Bears would have to beat the Atlanta Falcons. Then, one of the Seattle Seahawks or the Los Angeles Rams would have to lose.

There is still a scenario where the Packers win out and miss the playoffs — that happens if both the Seahawks and Rams also win out; or if one of them wins out, the other loses out, and the Falcons win out as well.

"I think we all know what's in front of us going forward," said Packers quarterback Jordan Love. "What we gotta do to finish the season off to have a chance to make the playoffs."

So, let's check out the week 17 scenarios for the Packers, according to the New York Times simulator tool.

Atlanta Falcons at Chicago Bears, Sunday, 12pm CT

As previously mentioned, the Falcons are an important component of the playoff picture because they are the only team that could finish 9-8 alongside the Packers and have a tie-breaking advantage because of their week 2 win in the head-to-head matchup. So, if the Falcons win, the Packers will have a 26% chance of making the playoffs, and it's a 30% chance if the Bears win. Chicago is still mathematically in the hunt, but it's a highly unlikely scenario.

Los Angeles Rams at New York Giants, Sunday, 12pm CT

That's a big one, because the Rams or Seahawks have to lose one game to give the Packers a viable path. Probably, the San Francisco 49ers game in week 18 is tougher for Los Angeles, but it would help if Tyrod Taylor and the Giants pulled off the upset on Sunday. It's a 12 percentage point swing: 37% chance if the Giants win, 25% if the Rams win.

New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Sunday, 12pm CT

The Saints are still in the wild card race, so it helps if they lose for the Packers to have a minor chance even losing one of their two games. It's an unlikely scenario, though, so it's only a 1 percentage-point swing. If the Packers win out, which is the most realistic path for them to make it, the Saints can't be ahead of Green Bay. So if the Bucs win and clinch the NFC South, the Packers will have a 29% chance. It's a 28% chance if the Saints win.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Seattle Seahawks, Sunday, 3:05pm CT

That's also a big one, and it's more realistic than the Rams losing to the Giants. That's why it's also not that big of a swing in terms of simulations, but it's as big of a deal in terms of the Packers playoff scenarios. The Packers will have a 33% chance of getting into the playoffs with a Steelers win, and a 25% chance with a Seahawks win.

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